A (Re)New(ed) Mission

The following Scripture is where my heart is right now. It's a longer passage than one would normally post in a blog, but I hope you'll stick with it. It's the Bible, after all.

Philippians 1:18c-30
Yes, and I will rejoice, for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance, as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account. Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith, so that in me you may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus, because of my coming to you again.
Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, and not frightened in anything by your opponents. This is a clear sign to them of their destruction, but of your salvation, and that from God. For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake, engaged in the same conflict that you saw I had and now hear that I still have.


Let me make two preliminary statements: 1) No, I am not suicidal. In relating to this verse very closely, I am not 'wishing for death'. I am, however, wishing to be with Christ. And that's a big difference. 2) I do not think so highly of myself as to believe I'm at the same place Paul was in his life as he was writing to the church at Philippi.

I read this passage this evening just prior to the start of Prayer Meeting at the Chicago Tabernacle, and it stuck with me all night. I kept going back to it throughout the service, reading and rereading what Paul had written. The Lord communicated something very clearly to me toward the end of the service, and I pulled out my journal and wrote the following:


What is my mission if not to lay my life down for the Body, to sacrifice myself for the Church, to labor for the lost, to challenge and exhort and teach and rebuke and encourage those who have ears to hear? Is it (my life) not meant for these things? Who am I to anchor my life in the harbor of complacency? No, I am meant for stormy seas, unfettered and free.

While it is my desire to see Christen again in Heaven, my primary hope is to see Jesus. The Lord took Christen and not me, which means I am here for some purpose. As I wrote about yesterday, that purpose is this process. He has me here for this reason. And while His reasoning and plan is for my ultimate good, I also recognize that it is not solely for my good. It is for yours as well. My stormy seas are meant to be put on display so that you would be encouraged in your stormy seas - encouraged to know that my life is not one of 'exceptional faith', just biblical faith. I am, by all stretches of the imagination, a regular person. With a regular job, a regular home full of regular furniture, eating regular food purchased from a regular (sometimes meager) bank account.

Do you see it yet as I see it? The Lord has not taken me because He has me here to share with you my sufferings, thereby emboldening your faith.

Perhaps you're reading this and you are not what you would call a 'born again Christian'. Perhaps what I write here, while 'inspiring', doesn't really make a whole lot of sense to you. Please understand that, without the grace of God in the person of Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit, I would be a mess right now. It is because of Jesus that I have hope. He came, fulfilled prophecy, lived a perfect life, died an undeserved death, rose from that death in power, thus defeating Satan, sin and death, took on your sin (imperfections) and my sin for Himself and gives out His righteousness to those who would believe. In so doing, He has made available eternal life in Heaven with Him for those who would turn from their sin, repent, believe in Him, and love Him and others by His grace. If you're reading this and you don't know Jesus, that's who He is and what He's done for you. Accept it. Accept Him. And see if He won't fill your life as abundantly as He has mine.

For those who do know and love Jesus, I am here for you. As Paul wrote, I would much rather be with Jesus. That's where the 'gain' is. But I am here to encourage you and build you up. I am here to challenge you if you get complacent. I am here to redirect you when your thinking is off. I am here for you.

When I first wrote my mission statement nearly 4 years ago, I liked the way it sounded. It resonated with the type of person I wanted to be. I now realize how true the statement is to what God has called me to be. My mission is this: To be joyfully spent making others glad in God. I will work to this end, by God's grace, until He sees fit to fulfill my deepest desire - going Home and meeting Him.